


Lessons

by Burgie



Series: Katja Joins Team Good AU [29]
Category: Star Stable
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-23
Updated: 2016-08-23
Packaged: 2018-08-10 13:46:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 858
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7847449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Burgie/pseuds/Burgie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mandy asks her mama about Pandoria.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Lessons

Mandy rode back to the bunker with her mind full of questions. Specifically, questions concerning Pandoria. Pi the witch hadn’t wanted to tell her about the place. Elizabeth had essentially said ‘we’ll tell you when you’re older’. And she could hardly ask her mother, or her Auntie Anne, both for the same reason- both women were permanently mentally scarred from their time there. She didn’t think that Avalon in this time would tell her either. And getting coherent answers out of Fripp was like getting blood from a stone.

After dismounting and entering the bunker, Mandy dialled her mama’s number and walked to the room that she’d turned into her bedroom.

“Mandy, what’s up?” asked her mama. “You don’t normally call during the day unless you have questions.”

“Mama, what can you tell me about Pandoria?” asked Mandy, sitting on the bed. “Everyone in this time is being cagey about it and I don’t like it.”

“Pandoria… hmm. Well, it’s pink,” said Alex. Mandy scoffed.

“I saw that from the rift, mama,” said Mandy, crossing one leg over the other. 

“Right, yeah, I remember Louisa telling me about that now,” said Alex. “It was after those purple Pandorian rocks fell down the mountain onto Jasper’s farm, right?”

“Yeah, and he went on about how they could’ve crushed him,” said Mandy, and laughed at her mother’s scoff.

“He was nowhere near that part of his farm,” said Alex. “Pi told me that he was in his pumpkin patch talking to the scarecrow.”

“Jasper hasn’t got Crowy yet in this time,” said Mandy.

“I know,” said Alex, and Mandy giggled. “That man really needed to get out more. I’m glad that he finally asked the baroness on a date, otherwise he’d still be pottering around his pumpkin farm talking to inanimate objects.”

“Anyway, Pandoria,” Mandy reminded her. “I have to go there eventually anyway to save Anne, so I should know about it.”

“Well, like Pi said, it’s not all bad. There are some good parts but they’re very rare. Aideen herself made those good parts, and they only still exist because of how strong her magic is. But the water is poisonous, and the very air is dangerous too if you breathe enough of it. And then there are the Shadow Seekers, or Shadow Guardians as some people call them. You’d better steer clear of them, otherwise they’ll suck the soul right out of you if they catch you.”

Mandy gasped. “Really?”

“Well, no. They try and succeed with normal people, but the souls of Soul Riders are too much for them and they spit them back out.”

“Gross.”

“The point is, they leave you alone.”

“You said Soul Rider…”

“And the souls of Generals are property of Garnok so they’re left alone too but they suffer the same effects. If a Shadow Seeker catches a Soul Rider or General, the person afflicted passes out and comes to after a while. Also they feel cold and when they wake up, they don’t feel so good,” said Alex. 

“I’ll steer clear of them, then,” said Mandy. “Was… was mum ever…”

“Yes,” said Alex, sounding sad. “She was there a lot so of course Shadow Seekers attacked her.”

“What else is Pandoria like?” asked Mandy, choosing not to dwell on the fact that her mother had been repeatedly attacked by those Pandoric monsters.

“Time works strangely there,” said Alex. “Sometimes it stretches out and sometimes it speeds up. Also, it sometimes teleports you to a random location so be on your guard at all times. Though the druids might mark you with anti-teleportation runes before you go there, I don’t know. The plants are also pretty dangerous so avoid them. The trees grow hallucinogenic fruit which you are forbidden to eat. Not that you’ll need to eat anyway, because your body freezes there.”

“I’m not going to get high off Pandoric fruit, mama,” said Mandy, laughing. “But what was it like when you were there?”

“Honestly, pretty tame,” said Alex. “I thought that it was cool. Sure, there were Shadow Guardians everywhere, and the islands were stacked or floating. Plus the water was toxic. But it was still cool. It’s different now, though, of course.”

“Maybe it was tamer because mum was there,” said Mandy. Alex paused.

“Yeah, maybe,” said Alex, sounding thoughtful. “Anne said that there were a lot more Shadow Guardians when she first went there.”

“Well, I probably won’t be going there for a while,” said Mandy. “You don’t have to worry, mama. I’ll be fine. I’m a Soul Rider and a General, so I’ve got double protection.”

“Yes, you do,” said Alex, and Mandy could hear the smile in her voice. “And I know that the druids and my younger self will do everything in their power to make sure that you’re fully prepared to go there.”

“I know,” said Mandy, and smiled. “Also, did Avalon really plant herbs in some random person’s backyard?”

“Yep,” said Alex, and laughed. Mandy giggled too. Her godfather was a strange man, and she was definitely going to remind him of his eccentricities when she got back to her own time.


End file.
